Department of Justice threatens the fun<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nA revised interpretation of the Wire Act issued by DOJ Office of Legal Counsel Assistant Attorney General Steven Engel and made public in January says the federal law bans the transmission of interstate wagers relating to all forms of gambling. Playing the lottery, of course, is a form gambling.<\/p>\n
Legal Challenges<\/b><\/h2>\n
Law experts say the DOJ opinion is just that \u2013 an opinion, and doesn’t necessarily mean it’s case closed for online lottery games, interstate poker pooling, and other certain forms of interactive gambling.<\/p>\n
Engel’s opinion reverses a 2011 guidance from the same DOJ office during the Obama administration that said the 1961 Wire Act banned only interstate transmissions of sports wagers \u2013 not all forms of gambling. That decision essentially allowed states to determine their own laws on internet casinos.<\/p>\n
Numerous state attorneys general and lottery officials have asked the DOJ to further explain the scope of the new interpretation. There have also been calls for the federal agency to provide immunities for states participating in interstate lottery games, and\/or have legal online gambling.<\/strong><\/p>\nThe State of New Hampshire is leading a lawsuit against the DOJ. District Court Judge Paul Barbadoro said at a hearing this month that the Wire Act is “a mess of a statute.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The $768 million Powerball winner almost wasn’t, as a 24-year-old Wisconsin man says he almost accidentally discarded the ticket. Manuel Franco came forward Tuesday to claim his $768.4 million prize that he won on the March 27 drawing. Under Wisconsin law, lottery winners are not permitted to remain anonymous. Franco told reporters he didn’t watch […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":103579,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,13699],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
$768M Powerball Winner Says Ticket Was Nearly Thrown Away<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n